Existing machine vision applications use a multiplicity of light emitting diode (LED) light sources, single or multi line lasers and structured white lights to obtain three-dimensional contour information through an acquired image. The drawback of such solutions is that the flood illumination provided by these types of light source or any distributed sources do not carry three-dimensional information, and they need additional information either through a structured light or a laser line source. This leads to a complex imaging system.
Complexity of imaging systems can be reduced through the use of programmable MEMS-based light sources. MEMS-based light sources can be programmed to scan a point of light at a very high frequency in an illumination area during the exposure cycle of an imaging device. In this way, the imaging device is able to more effectively capture three-dimensional contour information in an acquired image. This disclosure sets forth an improved imaging system that relies upon a MEMS-based light source. This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.